C2C3 Part III Certification of Pension Schemes and Effects on Members’ State Scheme Rights and Duties
Chapter I Certification
Preliminary
3 Issue of contracting-out F9... certificates.
F101
Regulations shall provide for HMRC to issue certificates stating that the employment of an earner in employed earner's employment is contracted-out employment by reference to an occupational pension scheme.
F101A
In this Act such a certificate is referred to as “a contracting-out certificate”.
2
The regulations shall provide for contracting-out certificates to be issued to employers and to specify—
a
the employments which are to be treated, either generally or in relation to any specified description of earners, as contracted-out employments; and
b
the occupational pension schemes by reference to which those employments are to be so treated.
F12A
The regulations may provide, in the case of contracting-out certificates issued before the principal appointed day, for their cancellation by virtue of the regulations—
a
at the end of a prescribed period beginning with (and including) that day, or
b
if prescribed conditions are not satisfied at any time in that period.
but for them to continue to have effect until so cancelled; and the regulations may provide that a certificate having effect on and after that day by virtue of this subsection is to have effect, in relation to any earner’s service on or after that day, as if issued on or after that day.
2B
In this Act “the principal appointed day” means the day designated by an order under Article 1 of the Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 1995 as the principal appointed day for the purposes of Part IV of that Order.
3
An occupational pension scheme is a contracted-out scheme in relation to an earner’s employment if it is for the time being specified in a contracting-out certificate in relation to that employment; and references in this Act to the contracting-out of a scheme are references to its inclusion in such a certificate.
F134
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F135
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F136
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7
Except in prescribed circumstances, no contracting-out certificate F12... shall have effect from a date earlier than that on which the certificate is issued.
F118
References in this Act to a contracting-out certificate, a contracted-out scheme and to contracting-out in a context relating to a money purchase contracted-out scheme are to be construed in accordance with section 176A.
4 Meaning of “contracted-out employment”, “guaranteed minimum pension” and “minimum payment”.
1
The employment of an earner in employed earner’s employment is “contracted-out employment” in relation to him during any period in which F15—
F15a
he is under pensionable age;
F15aa
his service in the employment is for the time being service which qualifies him for a pension provided by an occupational pension scheme contracted out by virtue of satisfying section 5(2) (in this Act referred to as “a salary related contracted-out scheme”);
b
there is in force a contracting-out certificate issued by the F2Inland Revenue in accordance with this Chapter stating that the employment is contracted-out employment by reference to the scheme.
F141A
In addition, in relation to any period before the abolition date, the employment of an earner in employed earner's employment was “contracted-out employment” in relation to him during that period if—
a
he was under pensionable age;
b
his employer made minimum payments in respect of his employment to a money purchase contracted-out scheme, and
c
there was in force a contracting-out certificate issued in accordance with this Chapter (as it then had effect) stating that the employment was contracted-out employment by reference to the scheme.
C12
In this Act—
“guaranteed minimum pension” means any pension which is provided by an occupational pension scheme in accordance with the requirements of sections 9 and 13 to the extent to which its weekly rate is equal to the earner’s or, as the case may be, the earner’s F6widow's, widower’s or surviving civil partner's guaranteed minimum as determined for the purposes of those sections respectively; and
“minimum payment”, in relation to an earner’s employment in any tax week, means the rebate percentage of so much of the earnings paid to or for the benefit of the earner in that week as exceeds the current lower earnings limit but not F8the applicable limit (or the prescribed equivalents if he is paid otherwise than weekly);
F3and for the purposes of this subsection “rebate percentage” means the appropriate flatrate percentage F16for the tax year in which the week falls as specified in an order made under section 38B (as it had effect before the abolition date) .
F72A
In subsection (2) “the applicable limit” means—
a
in relation to a tax year before 2009–10, the upper earnings limit;
b
in relation to 2009–10 or any subsequent tax year, the upper accrual point.
F173
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4
Any contracting-out certificate for the time being in force in respect of an employed earner’s employment shall be conclusive that the employment is contracted-out employment.
F45
Regulations shall provide for the determination by the F5Department of any question whether an employment is to be treated as contracted-out employment or as to the persons in relation to whom, or the period for which, an employment is to be so treated.
Pt. 3: power to modify conferred (1.6.1996 for certain purposes otherwise 6.4.1997) by S.I. 1995/3213 (N.I. 22), art. 146(1); S.R. 1996/91, art. 2(f); S.R. 1997/192, art. 2
Pt. 3: power to transfer functions conferred (1.4.1999) by 1999 c. 2, s. 23(1)(2)(6); S.I. 1999/527, art. 2(b), Sch. 2